transformer

American  

[trans-fawr-mer] / trænsˈfɔr mər /

noun

• transformers
  plural

1. a person or thing that causes or undergoes a change in appearance, structure, character, etc.

2. Electricity. an electric device consisting essentially of two or more windings wound on the same core, which by electromagnetic induction transforms electric energy from one set of one or more circuits to another set of one or more circuits such that the frequency of the energy remains unchanged while the voltage and current usually change.

3. Computers. Also transformer model a type of neural network that uses statistical relationships between sequential data, such as words and sentences, to learn context and produce output.

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transformer British  

/ trænsˈfɔːmə /

noun

1. a device that transfers an alternating current from one circuit to one or more other circuits, usually with an increase ( step-up transformer ) or decrease ( step-down transformer ) of voltage. The input current is fed to a primary winding, the output being taken from a secondary winding or windings inductively linked to the primary

2. a person or thing that transforms

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transformer Scientific  

/ trăns-fôr′mər /

1. A device used to change the voltage of an alternating current in one circuit to a different voltage in a second circuit, or to partially isolate two circuits from each other. Transformers consist of two or more coils of conducting material, such as wire, wrapped around a core (often made of iron). The magnetic field produced by an alternating current in one coil induces a similar current in the other coils.

2. ◆ If there are fewer turns on the coil that carries the source of the power than there are on a second coil, the second coil will provide the same power but at a higher voltage. This is called a step-up transformer.

3. ◆ If there are fewer turns on the second coil than on the source coil, the outgoing power will have a lower voltage. This is called a step-down transformer.

4. Compare converter rectifier

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transformer Cultural  

1. A device used to transfer electrical energy from one circuit to another. With an alternating current, a transformer will either raise or lower the voltage as it makes the transfer.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• transformers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of transformer

First recorded in 1595–1605; transform + -er ¹

Explanation

Use the noun transformer when you're talking about a device that conducts electricity and controls the voltage that can travel between one circuit and another. Electricians are familiar with transformers, since they are commonly used to manage the voltage of electricity that powers houses and some businesses. Sometimes you can see a transformer attached to a utility pole on a residential street. The word transformer was coined in 1883 from the French transformateur, which in turn comes from the Latin transformare, "change the shape or form of." The prefix trans, or "across or beyond," gives a clue to this meaning.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

transformer transformers

Rasuwagadhi’s acting chief executive, Pushkar Amatya, deployed crews and equipment in a last-ditch search for people who might be trapped in the facility’s transformer cavern, but found no one there.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026

A major turning point for Hugging Face came in 2018, when Google released a new version of its transformer, the neural network technology at the heart of modern generative AI models.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026

The new transformer could become a “meaningful” source of revenue for the company in 2028, Nir said.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026

The outage, which involved a transformer on the electricity grid, was related to extreme temperatures and did not injure anyone, the prefecture in the coastal department of Finistere said in a statement.

From Barron's ● Jun. 24, 2026

Alighting on the corrected transformer pole, she waited for Susan to appear with food.

From "Frightful's Mountain" by Jean Craighead George

"Underground excavations have compromised ground stability, placing substations, transformers, pylons and transmission towers at risk," City Power spokesman Isaac Mangena said.

From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026

The biggest impact is expected in transformers above 100 MVA, where demand has surged alongside data-center growth.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026

Thomas Murphy, vice president for Power & Construction Group, an electrical-infrastructure contractor near Rochester, N.Y., said prices for transformers are up about 70% in the past five years.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026

China already dominates the global market, as Cohen writes, in “wind turbines, high-voltage cables, transformers, solar panels, batteries, software to manage energy flows and more.”

From Salon ● Jun. 21, 2026

A moment later they were talking together in a murmured rush of which Mary later remembered nothing, and walking through a silly landscape of reed beds and electrical transformers.

From "The Amber Spyglass" by Philip Pullman

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